Lothar Steps Forward

Following Lothar's single hex move, all four of the root creatures immediately move forward a similar distance.  Moreover, strands of root extends outwards between each of the two creatures on either side, across hexes 0609 and 1009, forming a tenuous sort of fence.

But none of the creatures attack or act in anyway except to block Lothar's way ~ perhaps malevolent, perhaps not.

The players may decide upon the movement of their characters.

Lothar's Walk

I have not depicted the beetle glands on the image (it is very hard for me to create more than one light source on the program).  But I have extended the illumination to compensate.

Lothar moves up on the map above; and at the very moment that he travels the very last hex, from 0812 to 0811, the four figures surrounding him all snap into life and move one hex forward, then stop in place.

They seem to be collections of wooden roots, bound together like a mass of muscles, moving together as the creatures clump forward.

Pandred should move, then whomever else will come down the stairs, before Lothar and Embla move again (as we're technically half-way through the player's round).

UPDATE:  Everyone else has moved forward now.  The players may move again.

Engelhart's Walk

Engelhart, covered by the spell sanctuary, begins to make his way down the stairs.  It takes him 3 action points to get to the bottom.  He is able to advance two more along the left wall.  Here is what he sees:

Basically, nothing - though there is the dimmest, most subtle suggestion that there is something out ahead of him.  Perhaps it is that some of the blackness out there may be a little more reflective than the rest of the blackness.

Therefore, following his described action, he edges forward from here during the 2nd round of his sanctuary spell.  Moving forward two hexes (2 AP), he sees:

On the left, some sort of grey-brown figure, about six and a half feet tall.  On the right, what appears to be the edge of a well, with a very crude windlass atop it, only two feet above the well.  As you wait the remaining AP of your second round, you discern that the figure is completely motionless.

In two rounds, your sanctuary will run out.

Action?

Engelhart moves to 0812, giving him this slightly improved evidence:

A New Sight

Lothar finds himself looking down a stairwell:

The Stokka Sarcophagus

Date: halfway to 2pm Wednesday, April 27, 1650
Location: West of Store Stokka , Rogaland
Weather: a gentle breeze is blowing from the north, from along the coast, with brisk weather. The clear skies have endured and the sun is out. Feels like 4.6 C.

Pandred pushes the first slab on the sarcophagus completely off, revealing the legs of a skeleton.  With help from the sappers, she finishes the job, each slab hitting the mulch-covered floor with a thud before resting against the outside tomb walls.

Inside lays a skeleton ~ a distinctly non-human skeleton.  It is humanoid shape, about five and a half feet tall, but with a large, triangular head, squarish eye sockets and a fat, heavy jaw in a strange half-moon shape.  The rest of the body is strange as well.  The bones of the clavicals, the ribcage, the hip bones, the femur and so on, are much too thin.  This creature couldn't have weighed more than a hundred pounds, perhaps less.  Moreover, the hands have fingers that are nearly twice the length of a human.  The feet have toes that are of human finger length.  The head is oriented towards 0908.

There are no clothes in the sarcophagus, no bits of treasure that have been buried with the skeleton.  There is, however, a pottery lamp, about 3 inches across:

The wick has long since dried to dust and there's no oil in it, but it seems like it would still work.  Here's an image to show how this sort of lamp works:

Engelhart is Nipped Again ~ Round 5

There are three beetles left, all small ones.  Because they're non-thinking, they'll keep attacking until they're dead.

I count an attack on Valda, Embla and Engelhart.  In that order, I roll on a d20, 12, 11 and 19.

I'm sorry, I can't recall if Valda has a shield, though I've depicted her with one.  Could I confirm that she has a shield, in which case she will take no damage.  Embla is clearly missed.

These are just baby beetles, so Engelhart will take 1 point of damage.  Doesn't stun.

The party now moves (see comments below).

Success!  The beetles are all dead.  The final x.p. total is:

A Beetle Nicks Engelhart ~ Round 4

There are only two small beetles that attack Embla.  These roll a 10 and a 4, both missing.

There are also two small beetles that attack Engelhart.  The one on the left AGAIN rolls a 1 (feel better, O Cleric?), and due to its lack of intelligence I'll rule that it drifts into hex 1108.

The other beetle hits AC 7; Engelhart's character page says he has an AC of 10, so that should be a hit.  Can the cleric please confirm his armor class?

If it is a hit, the cleric takes 1 damage.

This leaves the map looking like this:

The party moves (see comments).

Following that movement, the map looks like this:

With corrections to experience won, the numbers stand as this:

A Few Bites, Nothing Serious ~ Round 3

There are only some slight beetle moves, as the party holds their position.  From left to right, starting with the beetle in 0606.

0606 attacks Embla, rolling an 18.  This hits for 1 point of damage.

0706 also attacks Embla, rolling a 7.  Misses.

0707, left, attacks Valda, rolling a 7.  Misses.

0707, right, attacks Lothar, rolling a third 7 in a row.  Still misses.

0807 attacks Lothar, rolling a 16.  This is a large beetle and it does 4 damage with a nasty bite.  Doesn't stun.

0906 attacks Pandred, rolling a 12.  Pandred is AC 8 and is hit for 1 damage.

1008 attacks Engelhart, rolling a 1.  The beetle loses it's balance, spinning around and remaining in the hex, but disengaging for the character's next round (do not treat adjacent hexes as melee hexes).

1009 attacks Engelhart, rolling a 10.  Misses.

The players move.

Following the players' move, the map looks like this:

And here is the x.p. updated.  Those two hits against Pandred did not happen, because she is AC 7 and not AC 8 (rolled a 12 both times for those attacks).

The Beetles Rush ~ Round 2

It is somewhat confusing as the flood of beetles comes streaming at the party.  However, only three of the beetles have enough movement to cover the ground and attack, though most of the front line of the party find themselves threatened.

There are two small beetles that are able to rush Embla and one small beetle able to engage Pandred.  Of these small beetles attacking Embla, the one is able to hit AC 8.  I think that is a miss, but if Embla could please confirm.

The beetle attacking Pandred hits AC 6.  Again, I think this is a hit, but if Pandred could please confirm.

This would be the beetle's full round.  These small beetles are quick, and hard to hit, as they are so small, but they do little damage.  They cannot do enough to stun either Embla or Pandred even if they do hit, so both players can act ~ but please let me know your armor class ratings.

The party can act as they will.

Following the party's attack, here is everyone's position:

Here is an updated x.p. table:

Here They Come ~ Round 1

Though the party has been relatively quiet, the dead beetle releases pheromones that are caught by the remainder in the nest (that are still disturbed from their last combat, so they are also on edge).  They come boiling out of the pits ~ but there is yet time for the party to take an action before the little beasties are upon them.

The little ones are babies; they've been hatched in just the last week to replace the mothers who died in the previous fight.  They move faster than their parents, as it is clear that they are on the vanguard of the swarm - if 11 beetles can be called a swarm.

The party may take their next move.

Following that move, the map looks like this:

With this for experience earned:

The beetles will have their turn in the next post (we'll call it round 2 for simplicity's sake).

A Moment for Concern

The above shows the movement for the last round.  Bergthora appears at the bottom of the ladder, Engelhart finishes saying a prayer over the body of Aleksandra.  He hasn't the sage ability to properly give a burial, but he can say a few words to assure the dead that they are remembered and something will be done about their corpses (which actually matters in game terms, just to reassure Engelhart).

The beetle, however, is showing signs of awareness of the party.  It has raised its head, it's forward feelers are moving rapidly all of the sudden and it is making a distinct clicking sound.

The party has initiative.

They use it to kill the beetle.  Here's the end of everyone's movement:

Lothar Comes Next

As Lothar descends to the bottom of the ladder, the glowing beetle moves a hex closer to the party . . . at this point, the main party is down.

What would be the next step?

Enter Embla

The beetle continues to wander along the far wall, apparently unaware of you.  Embla steps off the ladder and has a look around.

Who does what?

Pandred Steps In

As Engelhart moves, so does the beetle.  Pandred descends to the bottom of the ladder and takes in all the Engelhart had seen.

[Sorry, Pandred, about the image; I spent very little time on it.  It is just a placeholder, for now ~ I was able to get your battle axe ready]

Actions for both of you?

Engelhart Goes First

As Engelhart steps off the ladder, which we will say leads to hex 0708, here is what he sees:

Two of the pits that were glowing seem to be gone.  There is too much shadow to see if the pits are there, but they are certainly not glowing if they are.  There is one beetle stopped near the far wall. It is glowing, like they all have.  It seems to be testing the air; it is making no special sign that it is aware of Engelhart.

There are three skeletons in the room, picked clean.

Engelhart will have to move away from the bottom of the ladder before anyone else can descend; I believe Pandred meant to come next.

Engelhart, can you confirm or not if you cast bless on the party before descending?

Return to the Barrow

Date: 12pm Wednesday, April 27, 1650
Location: Stavanger, Rogaland
Weather: a gentle breeze is blowing from the north, from along the coast, with brisk weather.  The clear skies have endured and the sun is out.  Feels like 4.6 C.

With this remarkable improvement in the weather, it is comfortable to walk with coats open and caps doffed, though of course these things are kept close in case something changes.  Because you have now walked the distance between Stavanger and the Barrow before, it will only have taken five hours.

Yet, I don't want to assume that you're not exploring some other part of the wilderness, that you don't take the path north to the lodge for example.  Let me know.

But if you're satisfied to be at the barrow, please assume that you are.

The Women Hear a Story at the Greasy Cod

Date: 9pm Tuesday, April 26, 1650
Location: Stavanger, Rogaland
Weather: a gentle breeze is blowing from the northeast, from inland, with chilly weather and clear skies.  Feels like 1.4 C.

This night, half the town's ships took out from the harbour, with perfect weather for making their way to England or the Low Countries.

Pandred and Embla are sitting in a tavern, the Greasy Cod, which is empty this evening of sailors or most everyone.  However, they cannot help but see two men across the tavern, whom they are told came into Stavanger a week ago, covered with scars and having lost three companions in the woods.  Since then they have been staying at Old Man Askjellson's house, healing so they say.  To date, they've said nothing about the events that happened . . . but they is a rumour going about that these two men intend to go out again to search for their lost companions, and may be looking for others brave enough to go with them.

Having formed a party, the followers accepted so far include:

This is a fix; the first time I posted this I did not adjust Bergthora's
hit points for her constitution.